Schultz Flood Area: 2020 ERI Survey

Overview

Summer 2020 marked the 10th anniversary of the Schultz Fire that charred more than 15,000 acres and caused devastating post-wildfire flooding in downstream neighborhoods. This fall Researchers at the Ecological  Restoration Institute (ERI) at Northern Arizona University want to hear from residents living in areas impacted by the 2010 Schultz Fire and the subsequent flooding. 

Shortly after the Schultz Fire 10 years ago, ERI researchers led a project that documented all public and private costs associated with the fire, including property values, household impacts, including the financial costs incurred, experiences with flood insurance, health effects, and the impacts to local Mexican Spotted Owl habitat. The results of that project were published in the 2013 study, “A Full Cost Accounting of the 2010 Schultz Fire.”

ERI Survey Information

Events on the scale of the Schultz Fire and subsequent flooding can have long-lasting effects that often go undocumented. A second survey provides researchers and the community with a better understanding of the long-term impacts that these events have on households in this area.

If you live in a neighborhood impacted by the 2010 Schultz Fire or the flood events that followed, then you will receive a survey in the mail from the Ecological Restoration Institute by the end of October. This will be accompanied by a pre-paid return envelope and a letter explaining the project in detail. The survey will ask you about impacts and costs incurred by your household since 2011 and your thoughts on response and risk management related to the Schultz Fire, among other topics.

Take the Survey Online

The survey also is available online at www.tinyurl.com/schultzfire2020. 

Please note, however, that this survey is for Schultz Flood area households only and requires an access code, which was mailed to the sample area with the survey materials. The access code is located The access code is located on the front cover of the paper survey booklet or in the top right corner of postcard that was mailed to residents. It begins with the letter X, followed by five numbers.     

ERI asks that you complete the survey and return it as soon as possible, so that your experiences can be documented and used to support future hazard planning. ERI wants to hear from everyone — even if you moved into the area since the Schultz Fire occurred — so that it can develop a comprehensive picture of what has happened in the last decade. Your input will be shared with Coconino County and City of Flagstaff officials and local land management agencies to inform future fire and flood risk planning for a safer Coconino County. . ERI hopes to begin analyzing collected data early in 2021.

For More Information

If you have any questions about this study, please contact ERI's Melanie Colavito at melanie.colavito@nau.edu or 928-523-6651 or Cat Edgeley at catrin.edgeley@nau.edu or 928-523-7347.